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westonportman
Reviews
Shokuzai (2012)
Derailed by classic Japanese writing amateurism
"Shokuzai" first appears to have everything a Kurosawa fan would hope for, yet fails miserably to hold any lasting emotional or intellectual value due to extremely poor and formulaic writing.
As a study in film making, I would rate it at least 8/10 for something so low budget. The camera shots bring me back to the early Kurosawa days, slow and contemplative so much as to make any fan rejoice. Kurosawa's usage of sound and odd atmospheric background tracks are another stand out trademark of his that no fan will fail to appreciate in "Shokuzai". The first couple of episodes are such a treat in this sense that it's easy to miss what blunders the story suffers at first.
The core problem with "Shokuzai" is with it's writing, where character actions and convictions are vastly unconvincing, and the problems they suffer are so obviously curable it makes you nearly scream. "Shokuzai" treats childish and illogically perceived problems as absolute truths with no answer, then expects the viewer to feel sorry for it's characters who we are supposed helpless victims.
The characters fail to use any kind of logic, and the entire script bleeds of missed conversational opportunities. Worse is the repeated idea of one's "shokuzai" or "atonement" that every character is obsessed with, so much that one is locked up in a mental ward while another commits murder. Whether or not the book does a better job of showing us why this "shokuzai" is such an important part of these girl's lives is unknown to me, but these episodes take something that seems almost trivial, and tries to make it out as the main plot device.
Indeed, the problems that the characters face in "Shokuzai" would never be relevant on TV or in a novel outside of Japan. However, the idea that all Japanese enjoy this kind of story telling, or that the issues the characters suffer from are always real problems in Japan is simply untrue.
Creating characters who are overcome by grand ideas, repeating illogical one liners, and plagued by overly conceptual thinking is pretentious and boring. It is never well received, and never critically acclaimed even in Japan. As even Kurosawa's earlier films suggest, there is a home for logic and free thinking in Japan, transcendent of stereotyping and cultural boundaries, "Shokuzai" however, is not it. Here we have a series that is a massive step backwards in story telling, handled "well" by a director who is capable of much more.
Inshite miru: 7-kakan no desu gêmu (2010)
Wonderful sci-fi psychological horror by Hideo Nakata, director of Ringu.
Do not judge this film by it's cover, or even it's synopsis.
This film is very well shot and directed with a superb lead performance by Tatsuya Fujiwara (Battle Royale, Death Note, Parade).
If it weren't for films like "Saw" this film would be just as much of a classic as Battle Royale. Both were based on a novel.
This is nothing like the Saw films, there is little to no gore and there is no enemy other than the players in the game themselves. All the players are basically trapped underground, given weapons, and that's it. Each player gets his or her own room which he or she must sleep in during the night, and is ordered to stay in the room during the night hours or will be punished.
What stood out to me the most about this film was the atmosphere and pacing. Hideo Nakata, who I haven't enjoyed a film from in almost a decade really does well here, utilizing plenty of hall shots and calm scenes in between every scene where danger feels present.
In fact, this is what I enjoyed the most about the film, the calm moments where the characters are either alone or talking together trying to figure out what is going on.
The main character played by Tatsuya Fujiwara is likable, smart and played very convincingly. Tatsuya gives his best performance I have seen to date, avoiding acting like any of his characters from other films and keeping you engaged and into the plot.
I really enjoyed this, wanting to watch it again immediately after viewing it. Not so much for it's message, and definitely not for all the characters, but for a select few who really stood out and the overall atmosphere and feelings of isolation the film created. I highly recommend this for fans of films such as Battle Royale, Cube, or even any sci-fi film such as Alien, Sunshine, and The Black Hole, in which characters are forced to coexist in a limited space or set throughout the film.